The short answer is no. Vaping has been banned in the Maldives since November 15 with no loopholes for tourists. Read on for more information.
If you vape and you’re planning on coming on holiday to the Maldives, you will now need to make contingency plans because the import and sale of all vapes have been banned in the Maldives since mid-November 2024. The ban does not only apply to commercial imports – tourists are not allowed to bring vapes to the Maldives for their own personal consumption either.
If you’ve ever been to the Maldives before, you’ll be familiar with your luggage being X-rayed on arrival to check for bottles of alcohol, which are confiscated and held in lockers until you leave the country. The reason is because alcohol is only permitted for purchase from resort islands or on licensed liveaboard vessels, so you cannot bring your own. But now, if you have any vapes in your luggage, they will be confiscated too.
However, unlike the ‘loophole’ regarding the sale of alcohol in the Maldives (which allows for its consumption at resorts and on licensed liveaboards), you won’t be able to purchase any vapes either at resorts or on liveaboards. Indeed, under the new law, no vapes will be available for sale anywhere in the Maldives, whether that’s resorts, liveaboards, or even at shops on inhabited islands.
President of the Maldives, Dr. Mohamed Muizzu, said: “I have directed authorities to take all necessary measures to prohibit the importation of vaping devices and their components from November 15, 2024, and to prohibit the use, possession, manufacture, sale, advertising and free distribution of vaping devices in the country from December 15, 2024.”
The ban came in response to calls from a Maldivian health organisation that works to combat non-communicable diseases in the country, the NDC Alliance, as well as the Doctors Association and Nurses Association. It was followed by a petition from the parents of school-age children who were concerned about their children vaping. However, it is unclear how banning travellers from vaping at resorts would have any significant impact on the health of the Maldivian population, which the NDC Alliance is concerned with. Second-hand vaping exposure is very low compared to second-hand cigarette smoke.
The Maldives joins 34 other countries in completely banning vaping. The decision has left many tourism industry experts perplexed, since a number of tourists are now cancelling their holidays in the Maldives or considering not returning to the Maldives due to the vaping ban. There are an estimated 81.9 million vapers worldwide.
The vaping ban was not announced until October 22, only three weeks before it took effect, sending some visitors into a panic. In just one recent post on Tripadvisor, dozens of tourists discussed potentially boycotting the Maldives and holidaying in rival destinations such as Mauritius or Zanzibar instead. One Tripadvisor forum commenter, Shaun from the UK, said : “I’m very disappointed by this…I will have to find a new destination because as someone that uses a vape, I do not want to go back to cigarettes”.
Another commentator, identified as CountryKingandQueen, also based in the UK, added: “Given this outright ban has been brought in within a matter of weeks, there are lots of people who would rather not go to the Maldives anymore but they are tied in due to existing bookings.
“I am so cross we have been mugged over by this ban with no preparation…To be told to suck up the vape ban as the Maldives want to improve their country’s health whilst still allowing cigarettes everywhere, and alcohol on resort islands, leaves a nasty taste in tourists’ mouths.”
The long-term impact of the vaping ban on the Maldives’ tourism economy – almost 30% of the GDP and generating more than 60% of foreign currency earnings – remains to be seen.
